Large parts of South America have been affected by forest fires in the Amazon, including Bolivia. More than 4 million hectares of the Amazon forest already went up in flames. Over 2000 firefighters were deployed throughout the entire area. These are the most devastating fires of the past ten years and the difficult month of September, that traditionally has many fires, has only just begun. The Bolivian authorities therefore asked the international community for help. Our country offers relief supplies through a coordination mechanism of the European Commission. Other European countries such as France, Switzerland and Austria also decided to send specialised assistance.

On the initiative of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders a high-level seminar on opinion 1/17 of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) took place today at the Egmont Palace in Brussels. The President of the Court, Koen Lenaerts, opened the event, which was attended by legal experts and representatives of civil society.

Today, Belgium, together with Kuwait and Germany, presented a resolution to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which calls for an immediate ceasefire in Idlib, in the North-West of Syria. Belgium, Germany and Kuwait share a particular responsibility within the Security Council regarding the humanitarian aspects of the conflict in Syria.

On the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, the Vice-Prime minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders pleads for a definitive end to all nuclear tests. To this end, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) must enter into force.

This Monday, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Development Cooperation Alexander De Croo and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders will celebrate World Humanitarian Day. This year, August 19 honors women humanitarians from around the world who rally to help people affected by crises.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders regrets the demise of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. The signature of the INF in 1987 was a milestone in nuclear disarmament. For more than thirty years, this treaty contributed to Euro-Atlantic security through the verifiable destruction of nearly 3,000 conventional and nuclear missiles.

Today, the UN Security Council (UNSC) Working Group on Children and Armed Conflicts, presided by Belgium since 1 January, adopted conclusions by consensus on the situation of children in the armed conflict in Myanmar. For the first time in a long time, the Security Council is sending out a strong signal about the situation in Myanmar and the violations of children's rights in particular.

This morning, Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders met with the national female grass hockey team in Wilrijk. His visit to the Red Panthers is part of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s “Blue Heart Campaign”, launched on July 2 and ending on July 30, the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons.

Karl Lagatie is the new spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. Since July 8th, he took over from Matthieu Branders who will soon be starting his new assignment as Consul General in São Paulo. As of today, Nadia Benini joins the team as deputy spokesperson.